How to Make Stiff Decorator Frosting

If you have a lot of ground to cover decorating-wise on your cake, or if the intricacy of the design will require time and patience, this frosting is an excellent choice because it holds its shape for a long time, without hardening immediately, allowing you the latitude to futz with the decorating without it melting.

Use this frosting to decorate the Halloween haunted mansion cake, the skating rink cake, the cornucopia cake, and any other fancy cake you can dream up. Check the cake decorating instructions to see how many batches of this frosting to make.

Tools: Electric mixer, paddle attachment

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Yield: 4 cups

Stiff Decorator Frosting

7 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar

3⁄4 cup all-vegetable shortening

1⁄3 cup whole milk

1⁄4 teaspoon almond extract

Combine the sugar and shortening in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on low speed until the ingredients start to come together. Beat in the almond extract.

Gradually add the whole milk as you increase the mixing speed until the frosting is smooth and creamy. If necessary, beat in a few more drops of milk until you reach the desired consistency, which should be holding firm but pliable peaks.